Qwik Supply Chain Private Limited, a little-known company with a registered address at Navi Mumbai’s Dhirubhai Ambani Knowledge City (DAKC) and having links to Reliance Industries, was the third-largest donor to political parties using electoral bonds.
Qwik Supply Chain is in the spotlight, thanks to its Rs 410-crore donation using electoral bonds between FY22 and FY24, making it the third-largest donor to political parties, according to information uploaded by the Election Commission of India, after Future Gaming and Hotel Services and Megha Engineering & Infra. Another reason for Qwik’s sudden entry into the limelight is that it shares a common address with Reliance Industries (RIL) — the Dhirubhai Ambani Knowledge City (DAKC),
However, an RIL spokesperson in an emailed statement said that Qwik Supply Chain was not a subsidiary of any Reliance entity.
Publicly available information describes Qwik Supply Chain as a firm into warehousing, storage and transportation. The unlisted private firm was incorporated on November 9, 2000, with an authorised share capital of Rs 130.99 crore. Its paid-up capital is Rs 129.99 crore.
Filings with the Registrar of Companies (RoC) showed Reliance Group Support, Reliance Fire Brigade and Reliance Hospital Management together owning 50.04% of Qwik, which provides logistics and supply chain support to Reliance Retail.
A closer look at the company’s financials, as sourced by market intelligence platform PrivateCircle Research shows that the firm had an operating revenue of Rs 15,734.52 crore, a year-on-year growth of 41% versus the previous year (`11,165.73 crore). Its net profit for the period was a fraction of its revenue at Rs 33.7 crore, a growth of 55% versus the previous year (Rs 21.72 crore).
Between FY22 and FY23 the company made a total donation of Rs 360 crore to political parties; Rs 50 crore was donated in FY24, EC data show. In FY21, the firm’s operating revenue stood at Rs 9,813.37 crore, almost half its revenue reported in FY20 (Rs 18,695.28 crore), as the Covid-19 pandemic took a toll on its business. FY21 net profit, meanwhile, stood at Rs 23.97 crore versus Rs 29.44 crore reported in FY20, which is a year-on-year drop of nearly 19%.
RoC data show that the company has three directors and one reported key management personnel. The longest-serving director currently on board is Tapas Mitra, who was appointed nearly a decade ago, on November 17, 2014. Mitra is also a director of firms such as Reliance Eros Productions LLP and companies like Jamnagar Kandla Pipeline Company Private Limited.
Vipul Pranlal Mehta has been a director on the board of Qwik since December 10, 2019. He is also a director of eight other companies, including one called Rel Icons and Traders Private Limited. Sridhar Titti is the most recently appointed director, joining the board on November 27, 2023.